Decorated tile and process of making the same



Patented Aug. 5, 1 930 vroron LEFEBUEE, or LONDON, ENGLAND nEcoRArEn TILE Ann r'noonss or MAKING THE SAME no Drawing. Application filed. March 9, 1928; Serial no: 260,549, and in Great Britain" march 11, 1927.

In my specification No; 1,650,080 I have described a process or manufacture or decorative tiles'by pressing or fixing on to a suitablebacking with heating to a moderate tem- 5 perature, a sheet Which consists chemically or reacting ingredients, namely (1) silicates, and (2) compounds which will react with them, such as oxides, with fibrous or other fillers. The reacting ingredients in the proc- 10 esses described form a highly resistant decorative layer of plain colours, mottled and similar efiects, which can also be used without backing.

According to the present invention, I obtain a layer exhibiting not only the above decorative effects, but also any designs and similar efiects which can be obtained by printing or other similar mechanical operations, such as stencilling, transferring and like'processes, all of which I class under the term printing. It amounts in principle to forming the decorative layer in a different manner, but leading at the end of the process to essentially the same type or layer, with a greater range of decorative effect.

Low heats, with or without pressure, are again employed as in the previous specification above cited, to produce the final decorative" layer. I Workat temperatures below the upper limit of about 350 C. The mix can be adjusted to react at much lower temperatures, so that the most convenient range to produce the effects varies from room temperature to the above upper limit. For 1 5 instance, zinc oxide is best employed for temperatures between 135 C. and 350 C., whereas substitution of zinc carbonate permits the reaction to occur at roomtemperatures.

In'carryin out my invention, a fibrous layer comprising paper, asbestos paper, fabric or the like is impregnated with the reacting ingredients, and the decorative'elrect required 'is printed on the surface of the fibrous layer by means or a printing inlrcomprising only colours and'ingr'edients compatible with the reaction in question are employed,- the ink or paste consisting usually oft'he reacting ingredients With colours and other fillers. The colours"can be or such a'n'ature that owing totheir fine state of division, or to their staining power, they penetrate the fibrous layer. A

Various methods of proceeding may be adopted, as indicated hereafter. The til,'ac cordingto' the invention," comprises therefore two juxtaposed elements of similar material; Wither without a backing; Regarding the fibrous'layer, such as asbestos paper, this can be made so that'it contains one orall of the reacting ingredients, or fillers" to give colour, hardness, etc. These, particularly the solid' ingredients, can be introduced on the mill in the'standa'rd manner in which, for ex ample, mineral fillers are introduced into paper; or one or any of the'abov'e' ingredients suited to the purpose can'be introduced by precipitation methods,sucll as, for example, the introduction of an oxide or hydroxidby impregnating with the chloride and precipitating the endear hydrozrideby immersion in a base, such asa'ii alkali or'liquid agents can be: introd'uc'ed'by' impregnation, such" as, for'example, the alkalinesilicate.

Regarding the printing on thefibrous' layer, I can either print with a medium'which contains not onlythe'colo'ur but'a dequa'te proportions ofthe" reacting ingredients, or I can print with some of these ingre'di'ents andintroduce'the remainder by such methods as immersion in the liquid, or spraying-it on to the surface or in cases where the colour penetrates, I need not employ the reactants in the inlr when they' already exist in'the paper or the likei i Atypical printing medium would contain alkaline'silicate, z'inc oXide, or other'reac'ting compound, a filler suchas silica, pigments for colour, and any modifying agentr equir'ed to suit the needs of the particular kind'of printing, such as glycerol to resist ra'pid drying, 9 0

or sticky agents such as dextrine to give the requisite tacky quality. As an example, a suitable ink would consist of the following: alkaline silicate solution (about 40% of solid) 4 parts, zinc oxide-3 parts, ultramarine blue part, silica1 part, glycerol y art.

p It is obvious that to obtain a desired efiect, the order of the above operations can be changed to meet individual cases.

I give below a list of suitable combinations or methods, with a more detailed description of one particular method; but it is clear that modifications will be possible, so I do not bind myself rigidly and only .to the use of the methods indicated.

(1) First, a fibrous layer is taken, such as asbestos paper, which contains the solid ireacting ingredient such as zinc oxide, and any fillers, such as silica, or china clay, or pigments, which have been introduced into the fibre by standard methods such as adding fillers in a paper mill, or by precipation, as indicated above. The fibrous layer is now impregnated with alkaline silicate, yielding a layer which will react as above to a hard resistant mass. On to this layer 1 print the required design, using an ink which also contains the reactants and the necessary colour and any fillers required, as, for example, to facilitate printing. Y

(2) Secondly, I may take a fibrous layer from which one of the reactants is absent, such as the alkaline silicate, and print on it with an ink in which the same reactant is also absent. T he absent reactant can then be introduced into the decorative layer, such as by impregnation with alkaline silicate, resulting in the same type of layer as (1) above.

(3) Thirdly, the completely filled fibrous layer as in (1) above may be printed with inks which. simply penetrate and stain the layer. 7

(4:) In the case of very thin fibrous layers, the liquid reactant, i. e., alkaline silicate, may be omitted from the fibrous layer, but the complete ink may be used, which in the act of printing on the fibrous layer enables the silicate to penetrate the latter, and again leads 'to the same result.

(6) I can also print with the complete ink direct on to a rigid base, such as smoothed asbestos cement.

(7) I can also print with the complete ink direct on to the fibrous layer and rely upon the reacting ingredients in the ink to penetrate the fibrous layer, as they will do in special cases, such as a very. absorbent fibrous In the following example one particular method will now be described in greater detail.

Ea:a;-*npZe.Asbestos paper is manufactured, incorporating during manufacture zinc oxide as one of the reactants, and if desired, china clay, or silica, or similar fillers, to reduce the absorption of the paper and give hardness, for example, 40% zinc oxide, 10% silica, 5% colours. This paper may now be impregnated with alkaline silicate solution, or this operation may be deferred as below. On the surface of the paper, a design is printed in a medium consisting of a mixture of alkaline silicate, zinc oxide or zinc salt, colour and any other fillers, such as inert fillers, to give appropriate body to the ink, or small percentages of modifying agents such as glycerol or oily substances, to facilitate printing. For thick layers which have not been previously impregnated with alkaline silicate solution as above, and, where the silicate in the ink may not penetrate sufficiently deeply, a further immersion, or spraying, on one or both sides, with the silicate is necessary.

This provides the decorative layers ready to be heated and/or pressed, preferably on to a suitable rigid backing to give the resistant decorative article, the layer being secured to the rigid backing by a junction such as that used in accordance with the parent specification. W'here greater strength is required in the fibrous decorated layer, 1 can give it greater strength by metallic reinforcement, as for example by metallic netting.

The preferred form of my invention consists in a tile manufactured by heating and/ or pressing the fibrous decorated layer upon asbestos cement, which may or may not be suitably backed.

Nhat I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is l. A process of manufacture of decorated tiles and like articles, of the kind consisting of two juxtaposed elements, and manufac tured by pressing, with heating to a moderate temperature, a sheet consisting ofa fibrous layer in which are incorporated reacting ingredients, namely (1), silicates and (2) compounds which react with them to form a hard resisting compound, and fillers, which process consists in producing on the surface of the tile a decorated effect by means of printing material adapted to finally form on the fibrous layer a hard resisting compound similar to that of the said sheet.

2. A process of manufacture of" decorated tiles and like articles, as claimed in claim 1, in which only one of the react-ing ingredients is at first present in one of the juxtaposed elements and the other is introduced into this said element by passing into it from the other element when juxtaposition takes place.

3. A process of manufacture of decorated tiles and like articles, as claimed in claim 1, in which only one of the reacting ingredients is at first present in the fibrous layer and, the other is introduced into this said element by passing into it from the other element when juxtaposition takes place.

4. A process of manufacture of decorated tiles and like articles, as claimed in claim 1, in which the compound reacting with silicate is alone present in the fibrous layer, the other reacting ingredient being introduced in to the said layer by passing into it from the ink when juxtaposition takes place.

5. A process of manufacture of decorated tiles and like articles, as claimed in claim 1, in which only one of the reacting ingredients is at first present in both the juxtaposed ele- H ments and the other is introduced simultaneously in both after juxtaposition through a suitable treatment such as sprinkling.

6. A process of manufacture of decorated tiles and like articles, as claimed in claim 1,

in which both the reacting ingredients are present in one only of the juxtaposed elements and are introduced in the other when juxtaposition takes place.

7. A process of manufacture of decorated tiles and like articles, as claimed in claim 1,

1 at first present only in the inkand are introduced into the fibrous layer owing to its porosity by penetrating into it from the other element when juxtaposition takes place.

9. A process of manufacture of decorated tiles and like articles, in which a decorative effect is obtained on a rigid base by means of a printing material comprising reacting ingredients, namely (1), silicates and (2) compounds which react with them to form a hard resisting compound, and fillers, so as to form on the said base a hard resisting compound.

10. A process of manufacture of decorated tiles and like articles, as in claim 8 in which '2 the decorative effect is obtained on a fibrous layer comprising reacting ingredients, namely (l), silicates and (2) compounds which react with them to form a hard resisting compound, and fillers, by means of ordinary printing ink.

i 11. Av process of manufacture of decorated tiles and like articles, asclaimed in claiml, in which the two juxtaposed elements are pressed onto a suitable backing, while during the process of manufacture.

12. A process of manufacture of decorated tiles and like articles, as claimed inclaim 1,

fect on the sheet consists-of printing ma-' terial contalning similar reacting ingredients and fillers, so as to form a resisting compound similar to that of the said sheet.

14. Decorated tiles consisting of a resisting compound comprising a suitable backing and, pressed hot onto the said backing, a decorated sheet consisting of a fibrous layer in which are incorporated reacting inhot,

gredients, namely (1) silicates and (2) compounds which react with them to form a hard resisting compound and fillers on which decorative effect on the sheet consists of printing material containing similar reacting ingredients and fillers, so as to form a risisting compound similar to that of the said s eet.

15. Decorated tiles consisting of a resisting compound comprising a rigid base on which the decorative effect consists of an ink containing reacting ingredients, namely (1) silicates and (2) compounds which react with them to form a hard resisting compound, and fillers.

16. Decorated tiles consisting'of a resisting compound comprising a decorated sheet consisting of a fibrous layer in which are incorporated reacting ingredients, namely (1) silicates and (2) compounds which react with them to form a hard resisting compound, and fillers on which the decorative effect consists of ordinary printing ink.

17 Decorated tiles consisting of a resisting compound comprising a decorated sheet consisting of an absorbent fibrous layer in which are incorporated reacting ingredients, namely (1) silicates and (2) compounds which react with them to form a hard resisting compound and fillers on which the decorative effect on the sheet consists of printing material containing similar reacting ingredients and fillers, so as to form a resisting compoundsimilar to that of the said sheet.

18. Decorated tiles consisting of a resisting compound comprising a decorated sheet consisting of an absorbent fibrous layer in which are incorporated reacting ingredients,

namely (1) silicates and (2) compounds which react with them to form a hard re- 'sisting compound and fillers on which the decorative efiect on the sheet consists of printing material containing similar reacting ingredients and fillers, so as to form a resisting compound similar to that of the said sheet, the said printing material being of great fluidity and its fillers being in a fine I state of division, so as to easily penetrate the absorbent fibrous layer.

In testimony whereof, I affix my signature.

' VICTOR LEFEBURE. 

